Cigarette case



L. ESTEROW CIGARETTE CASE Feb. 21, 1950 Filed Jan. 16, v1947 1 INVENTOR. [e0 [Ste/row differ Patented Feb. 21, 1950 t Thisinvention relates to cigarette cases, and ha's'for its primary object the provision of means by'which cigarettes contained within the case will have their ends or extremities raised to' a'n elevated position to enable the same to be presented to the smoker in such a manneras to' be easily grasped by the fingers and withdrawn from the cigarette case. In many types of cigarette cases, the contained 'c'igaretteslie flatwisely within the case and when the lid or cover of the case is raised or opened, it is diificult for the fingers to engage and grasp a cigarette and lift it out of the case. This is particularly true when the case is completely filled with the cigarettes.

The present invention therefore contemplates the provision of a cigarette case construction in which means is provided by which the entire bank consisting of one or more rows of cigarettes contained within the case will have their tips or ends elevated to an angular position with respect to the body of the cigarette case, thereby presenting the ends or tips of the cigarettes in the case in such a manner as to enable the cigarettes or any one of them to be readily grasped by the fingers and lifted out of the. case. .Another object of the invention is to provide means by which alignment of the cigarettes is maintained within the case and by which an elevating movement of the cigarette holder is automatically secured when the case is opened, and the holder is folded down when the cover of the case is closed.

More particularly, the invention contemplates the provision of a case in which a cigarette holder or tray is hingedly mounted, said holder or tray including spring means interposed between the holder and the body of the case for elevating the holder and the cigarettes contained therein. to a raised angular position when the cover of the case is opened, whereby the cigarettes in the holder will be presented to the smoker in a convenient and accessible manner enabling him to easily select and withdraw one or more from the case.

These and other objects are attained by the invention, a more particular description of which will hereinafter appear and be set forth in the claim appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein an illustrative embodiment of the invention is disclosed, Fig. l is a top plan view of the improved case in open position, with a portion of the cover of the case broken away, and showing the manner in which the cigarettes in the holder are 12,498,035. CI AR T :ICAISE Leo Esterow, New York, N. Y. Application Januarylfi, 1947, Serial No. 722,331 1 Claimzf (c1. ale-41.2)

FATE-NT I OFFICE presented when thefcover is in open position; Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 3 is'a view of the under side of the cigarette-holding tray, showing the leaf springs thereon, and Fig. 4 is a front view of the tray.

With reference to the drawing, l indicates the body of the cigarette case, which is preferably of relatively flat and shallow form, the same having; the upturned edge flange l a. The cover is indicated at 2, the same being substantially similar in size and shape to the body I' and said cover is hinged to the body by the hinge 3, the hinge being of the conventional form employed in cases of this character. A closure device of known character, andconsisting of the catch elements 4 and 5, holds the cover closed in the mannerwell known in thisart.

The cigarette'fholder includes a tray member 6, in the form of an elongated plate provided with the cut-outs or apertures l I to secure lightness. Atits opposite ends the tray 6 is upwardly curled as'indicatedat 9, these curled end por-v tions of thetray serving to hold the cigarettes I0 confined on the tray. At its rear edge, the tray 6 is provided with the lugs 1 which fit about th hinge pin" 8 of hinge 3'in such a manner that the tray is thus hingedly'mounted in the case.

As will be clearly seen in Figs. 3 and 4, the tray 6 is provided with a pair of leaf springs l2, said springs being stamped out of the body of the tray and being thus integral therewith and the same are bent downwardly in the manner seen in Figs. 3 and 4, so that when the cover 2 of the case is in its open position, the springs l2, being then not under pressure by the cover, will hold the tray 6 in an elevated angular position, as in Fig. 2. As a result, the cigarettes then supported by the tray will have their outer ends or extremities l6 elevated to such an extent as to have these ends 16 presented in raised condition to the user, thus permitting the end of one or the other of the cigarettes in the case to be easily grasped and picked out of the holder. The degree of angularity at which the tray 6 is presented, is determined by the extent of bend or shape in the springs I2 and the same may be readily bent or shaped to secure the desired elevation or lift 01' the tray.

While the springs 12 are shown as being formed as an integral portion of the tray, it is obvious that the same may be separate elements attached to either the tray 6 or to the inner face of the body I of the case, such springs in any case tending to angularly elevate the tray when the cover 2 is opened.

For holding the cigarettes l in position on the tray, I provide a hinged retaining plate or clamping element t3 which is formed with a pair of lugs 14 through which the hinge pin 8 extends, this arrangement being such as to pivotally attach the retaining or clamping plate l3 at the hinge 3. A relatively weak torsional spring I! has oneof its ends engaging the plate 13 and tending to urge the same toward the upper face of the tray 6 so that the cigarettes will be thus resiliently gripped between the plate 13 and the tray 6. The pressure of the spring I! is strong enough to hold the cigarettes to firmly on the tray 6 but without imposing crushing or damaging force upon the same.

In order to keep the cigarettes in the holder parallel, particularly when the holder is partly empty, I provide the clamping or retaining plate 13 with aligning means consisting of the spaced ribs P5 or other shaped projections, such projections being pressed out of the plate 13 and being so located and shapedthat they will fit between the cigarettes and prevent them from sliding sidewise to angular positions when the .case is partly emptied of its contents.

In the use of the case, the holder, consisting primarily of the co-operating elements I3 and 6, is filled with a supply of cigarettes l0 and the cover of the case is closed. Upon opening the cover 2, and which may be raised by a suitable hinge spring when the catch 4, 5 is released, the tray -6 and the plate-l3 will be raised by the leaf springs 12 in the manner shown in Fig. 2 so that the cigarettes held between the tray 6 and the plate I3 will thus have their ends l6 elevated to make the same readily available to the user.

When the cover 2 is closed down, the springs 12 will be depressed to allow the holder to lie fiatwisely within the .case, which may, as heretofore stated, be made in the conventional flat and shallow form, since the holder-raising means herein described adds no bulk or thickness to the cigarette-holding means.

While I have shown and described an embodiment of the invention, it is obvious that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, the shape and disposition of the holder-raising springs may be varied; the holder may be arranged to hold several rows of cigarettes rather than the single row shown; the separating elements I 5 may be made of other shape, and various other arrangements are possible as will be clearly understood by those skilled in this art, and hence such changes are contemplated as being within the scope of the annexed claim.

What I claim is:

In a cigarette case, a body, a cover pivoted to the body, a tray pivoted in the body on the pivot which attaches the body and the cover together. said tray having upturned cigarette-confining ends, a clamping plate pivotally mounted on the same pivot as that which attaches the body and cover together, a spring mounted on said pivot and operative to urge the clamping plate toward the tray to thereby hold cigarettes on said tray, leaf springs in the form of a plurality of tongues stamped out of the body of the tray and extending transversely of the cigarettes in thetray, and located closer to the pivot for said tray than to the forward edge of the tray, said springs having free ends bent downwardly and resting against the-inner face of the body of the case so that said springs will raise the tray and the clamping plate upwardly to an angular position less than vertical when the cover of the case is raised.

LEO ESTEROW.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the Germany Jan. 31, 1934 

